Arguably the most iconic American fighter of WWII, the Mustang is a testament to America’s ingenuity and industrial capabilities. North American Aviation designed the Mustang in 1940 to satisfy a British order, the prototype’s first flight taking place just 149 days after contract signing.
The P-51 emerged from a set of British specifications, which also nicknamed the new aircraft as the Mustang. The original variant, the Mustang Mk.I, was powered by an Allison V-1710 engine. However, the Allison struggled at higher altitudes, which prompted the British to experiment with the design, swapping out the V-1710 for their more capable Rolls-Royce Merlin. This engine-airframe combination proved to be a game changer, providing the Mustang with a top speed of over 400 mph and vastly improved high-altitude performance. Coupled with the new K-14 gunsight and an improved armament of six .50” caliber Browning machine guns, the Mustang’s impact on the air war over Europe cannot be overstated.
Before this updated Mustang entered service, the 8th Air Force’s bomber units experienced a horrific 77% overall casualty rate between 1942 and 1944. The P-51 completely reversed that trend, and mission requirements for bomber crews actually went up as the Mustangs went to work eliminating the Luftwaffe from the skies over Europe. Their efforts defending American bomber formations earned the escorts the nickname Little Friends.
A testament of the type’s success is the number of Mustangs which the U.S. Army ordered during WWII. The Museum’s P-51D (s/n 44-72483) is one of more than 15,500 Mustangs built. Constructed in 1945, the fighter immediately journeyed to England where it joined the Eighth Air Force. The Military Aviation Museum acquired the aircraft from its previous owner in Switzerland during 2004.
Lieutenant Colonel William “Wild Bill” Bailey: Our aircraft is painted in the markings of the 353rd Fighter Group with the black and yellow checkers on its nose, and a black and yellow propeller spinner. Known as the Slybirds, this Fighter Group comprised the 350th, 351st, and 352nd Fighter Squadrons.
The aircraft’s specific livery represents a 353rd FG Mustang flown by Lieutenant Colonel “Wild Bill” Bailey, Deputy Group Commander, and includes his six aerial victory symbols. He called his original aircraft Double-Trouble because he left two girlfriends at home in the United States; the name for his subsequent Mustang became Double-Trouble Two after another pilot crashed the original.
A graduate of the Civilian Pilot Training Program, Bailey chose Army Flight Training in 1940 instead of Harvard Business School. During his two operational tours, Bill Bailey flew 186 combat missions, totaling 454 hours. Thirty two of these missions (and 129 hours) were in the P-51. Bailey received credit for 3 enemy aircraft destroyed in aerial combat and an additional 3 destroyed on the ground.